


The Sign

by Hang_In_There_Baby_Crookshanks



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Fluff, M/M, Podcast: Fanatical Fics and Where to Find Them, Song fic, Sort Of, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Valentine's Day, it's very fluffy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-13
Updated: 2020-05-13
Packaged: 2021-03-02 22:33:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,985
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24164431
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hang_In_There_Baby_Crookshanks/pseuds/Hang_In_There_Baby_Crookshanks
Summary: Justin Finch-Fletchley thinks he has zero chance of being asked out for Valentine's Day. Is he about to be pleasantly surprised? Or will the irritating muggle song that he seems to be the only one able to hear drive him crazy first?
Relationships: Justin Finch-Fletchley/Ernie Macmillan
Comments: 2
Kudos: 11





	The Sign

**Author's Note:**

> This was written for the Fanatical Fics May writing challenge. The prompt was to have the M/C as a Hufflepuff or Ravenclaw in Harry's year and include the characters listening to a muggle song.

‘Sooooo Justin, what are you doing for Valentine’s day?’ 

It was a cold morning the week before Valentine’s day when Hannah Abbott posed this question to Justin Finch-Fletchley. Gossip had been flying around the castle about which couples were attending Valentine’s events and who was yet to snag a date. Unfortunately a certain friend who Justin was hoping would ask him hadn’t done so and he was facing another Valentine’s Day alone. 

‘Nothing,’ Justin replied. ‘I really don’t have time to be worrying about dates.’ 

‘Stop lying!’ Hannah squatted his arm. ‘You’re as much a hopeless romantic as I am!’ 

‘It’s not like anyone is going to ask me Hannah.’ Justin sighed deeply. This was quickly becoming as depressing as the rest of his year. ‘No one’s given a sign that they may be interested in me, and I don’t want to ask someone who I’m going to be rejected by.’ 

‘Oh, stop moping,’ Hannah patted him on the shoulder. ‘You’re a good looking bloke! Maybe someone will ask you?’ 

Justin snorted. He started to move away from the table and called back to Hannah. 

‘I’ll be asked out for Valentine’s when one of my friends does something muggle!’ 

*********  
He first heard it on Sunday morning. 

‘I saw the sign and it opened up my eyes, I saw the sign’

Justin yelped aloud, slamming his hands over his ears in shock and jumping as the music blared around him. It sounded as though a radio at full volume was forced into his ear. 

He was familiar with the song. It was a muggle one that his sister was a fan of. After a dramatic breakup with her boyfriend over the summer, she’d locked herself in her room and played it repeatedly for days, resulting in the tune being burnt into his mind. However this didn’t sound like a normal tune stuck in his head, it had almost burst his eardrums. 

His friends chose that moment to meet him. They walked over to him looking slightly uneasy. 

‘Are you ok Justin?’ Ernie threw him a concerned look. ‘You having hallucinations about failing the OWLs as well? I realised I just needed more sleep-’ 

Susan elbowed Ernie sharply in the ribs and he coughed loudly. The group seemed to reach a silent agreement not to ask any further questions. 

‘I’m ok,’ Justin plastered on a grin, trying to forget about the song. ‘Do you want to go for a walk?’ 

The three of them nodded and they left the common room. After their walk, the rest of the day was spent doing homework and Susan showing him up in an epic game of chess. Justin forgot completely about the song. 

******

The next time he heard it, it was towards the end of his muggle studies class on Monday morning. 

‘I saw the sign and it opened up my eyes, I saw the sign’

The synthesised music blasted from nowhere. He crushed his hands over his ears, however as quickly as the music started it had stopped. He looked around the class and, thankfully, only Dean Thomas sitting beside him seemed to notice his sudden movement.

‘Did you hear that?’ he asked Dean quietly. 

‘Hear what?’ Dean looked at him as if he had grown another head. 

‘Never mind.’ Justin muttered. He didn’t want to tell Dean that he was hearing phantom muggle music. Thankfully none of his friends took Muggle Studies with him and wouldn’t follow him up on it. He really didn’t need anyone to know he was hearing songs that no one else could. Deciding Ernie was right, he vowed to go to bed early tonight. 

******  
Unfortunately, sleeping failed to cure him of the bloody song. He heard it several more times at an increasing frequency and he was becoming alarmed. Why was he hearing one line of a muggle pop song at the volume of a jet taking off? And why could no one else hear it? 

Could he have been cursed by someone who knew his sister? What if his family were in trouble? The number of people who would know a muggle song at Hogwarts wasn’t high. He wasn’t really close with any other muggleborns and didn’t think any of them would want to curse him. 

As he walked in the great hall for lunch he conceded that he needed help. Spotting his friends he decided to confide in them, hoping they could determine if this was malicious. 

‘How was your morning Justin?’ Susan asked him, not meeting his eyes. He peered around at the group to find that they were all staring down at their plates. 

‘Er,’ Justin found this off-putting. ‘Fine I suppose.’ 

‘That’s nice,’ said Hannah, lifting her sandwich to her mouth while still not making eye contact. This was veering into bizarre behaviour territory. 

‘Are you all ok?’ Justin asked nervously. ‘There wasn’t another Azkaban breakout was there?’ 

‘No!’ Ernie’s head jerked up. Just as quickly his eyes shifted to the wall behind Justin. 

Bewildered, Justin started serving himself lunch. First he was hearing imaginary music and now he had to try and deal with strange friends? 

‘So has anyone got a Valentine’s date to Hogsmeade this weekend?’ He asked, hoping this would start a conversation. 

Regrettably, at his question, Susan coughed mid-sip of her pumpkin juice and it came splurting out her mouth.

‘Susan that’s disgusting!’ Ernie cried next to her, trying to wipe up the mess. ‘I have to go wash this off.’ 

He walked hastily out of the hall and Susan rushed after him. 

Justin quickly made a decision and turned to Hannah.

‘Do you know anything about hearing music that no one else can hear?’ Hannah’s eyes darted around the room before finally settling on his own. ‘I’ve been hearing this muggle pop song that my sister used to get over her breakup-’ 

‘Wait,’ Hannah interrupted sharply, putting a hand on his wrist. ‘Breakup?’ 

‘Yeah,’ Justin was puzzled as to why this was the piece of information she’d latched onto. ‘It’s called The Sign and it’s about someone finally noticing all the things that were wrong in their relationship and ending it. Trust me, I had to listen to it enough over the summer. Do you think I should be worried about it?’ 

‘You’ve probably just got the song stuck in your head,’ Hannah answered quickly, brushing him off. 

‘It’s not! Hannah, what if I’ve been cursed? What if it’s You-Know-Who?’ 

‘Yes because obviously You-Know-Who would use muggle music to drive a person to insanity. Sounds very likely for someone who, you know, hates muggles,’ Hannah snapped bluntly and swung her legs over the bench starting to leave the table. ‘I’ll meet you in Herbology.’ 

*****  
By the end of the week Justin found himself lying face down on a couch in the common room. A pillow was squashed over his head in both a feeble attempt to stop the song and spy on his friends. For the past two days the line had played in his head hundreds of times and his friends behaviour had made them prime suspects. He could barely concentrate and had become rather irritable from the lack of sleep. 

‘We have to tell him!’ Hannah’s voice interrupted his thoughts. ‘The song is a breakup song! He’s never going to get it!’ 

Justin whipped his head up from where it was hidden under the pillow, turning towards Hannah who was standing with Ernie and Susan.

‘You three are behind this!’ Justin shot at them, giving them the best glare he could muster. ‘Explain yourselves now! I’m losing my marbles over here!’

His three friends glanced at each other before Hannah opened her mouth. 

‘You see-’

‘No Hannah,’ Ernie cut Hannah off and looked Justin in his eyes for the first time in days. ‘This is my fault. Can we talk Justin?’ 

Ernie led Justin up their empty dorm and shut the door. 

‘Have you ever heard of Animo Canticum?’ Justin shook his head. ‘It allows the caster to place a song in the mind of a person for a specific purpose. The song plays in their mind in growing frequency until they realise what that purpose is.’ 

‘So you cast it on me?’ Justin’s brow furrowed. ‘But, why?’ 

‘Hannah told me you needed a sign for Valentine’s day.’ 

‘Oh’ 

There was a pause where the pair stared at each other. Ernie was blushing profusely and a small smile was forming on Justin’s face. 

‘How did you find out about the song?’ Justin’s smile grew even larger. ‘I never thought you’d lower yourself to muggle music for Merlin’s sake!’ 

‘I was trying to make an effort!’ Ernie cried out. ‘Besides I was motivated by a comment you made to Hannah. I was hoping you would realise it was me. Well technically it was the three of us but the girls did it for me. Please don’t be angry at them, we all felt so guilty after we cast it.’ 

‘You didn’t answer my question.’ Justin was smirking by this point. 

‘Hannah helped me.’ Ernie confessed. ‘You know she has muggle cousins? They played her a song called ‘The Sign’ but she could only remember one line of it.’ 

‘So you charmed me to hear a single line of a muggle love song, that actually turned out to be about a breakup, and wouldn’t stop until I realised that you cast it?’ Justin raised his eyebrows, he had a good feeling about where this was going. 

‘Will you go with me to Madam Puddifoots tomorrow for Valentine’s Day?’ 

Justin paused for a moment, he figured Ernie deserved some suspense after this week. 

‘Well I did hear a sign.’ 

‘Oh very funny.’ 

******

As Ernie and Justin approached Madam Puddifoots they saw Harry Potter muttering to himself and angrily storming off in the other direction. 

‘Hope our date goes better than his did,’ Justin quipped.

Besides the location being as aggressively pink as Umbridge’s office the pair had quite a nice afternoon. They each had a cup of tea and nibbled at sweets while they chatted. It was an uncertain time for the wizarding world but Justin, being an eternal optimist, saw a future with Ernie alongside him. He thought that that future looked pretty fantastic. 

After they’d finished at Madam Puddifoot’s the pair slowly strolled back up to the castle. 

‘I can’t believe you chose a song you didn’t even know all the words to.’ He chuckled at Ernie. 

‘Look, I was trying to impress you and I had limited resources at my disposal,’ Ernie whined. ‘In hindsight it was not the greatest plan I’ve ever had.’ 

‘I’m glad you asked me though,’ Justin confessed. He could feel his cheeks turning pink. ‘Maybe you can come and visit me this summer and I can play you The Sign repeatedly and see how you-’ 

Ernie pecked Justin on the lips and pulled away quickly. 

‘Was that ok?’ 

Justin just smiled and kissed him some more. 

*****  
**Two Weeks Later**

‘Oh,’ Ernie said simply. 

‘Well it’s definitely a break up song,’ Susan confirmed. 

‘I really should’ve listened to the words properly,’ Hannah conceded, ‘but it’s not like the two of you were offering up any suggestions.’ She narrowed her eyes at Ernie and Susan. 

Justin smirked at the three of them. 

‘You’ve only got about a hundred more listens until you’ve listened as many times as I have!’ He said cheerily, he wasn’t planning on lifting the charm anytime soon. 

‘You only had to listen to one line!’ Ernie burst out. ‘That’s not fair!’ 

‘This is your sign that if you ever charm me again I will refuse to speak to all of you.’ Justin told them all before crouching down to whisper in Ernie’s ear.   
‘Besides, I’ll make it worth your while later.’ 

Ernie swallowed loudly and flushed red in response. Justin took his hand and squeezed it as the song started again in their ears. 


End file.
